Bill O'Reilly Exploits Another Tragedy To Spread Misinformation On 'Illegals'

Most undocumented immigrants are law abiding. Research suggests that "first-generation immigrants make their communities safer by working hard and raising families." But in an effort to foment fear and loathing of this community, the right wing promotes a narrative of criminal aliens running wild in our streets because of our lax immigration laws. Bill O'Reilly has advanced this anti-immigrant trope. In 2007, he obsessed about an undocumented man who, in Virginia, caused two traffic fatalities which, according to Bill, wouldn't have happened if this man had been deported. O'Reilly's outrage generated a shouting match between him and Geraldo Rivera who accused Bill of "obscuring a tragedy to score a cheap political point." Last night, O'Reilly, once again, obscured a tragedy to, once again, validate his xenophobia and, for good measure, bash the President for not keeping those criminal brown people out of his peaceful white America. And once again, his propaganda doesn't fit the facts.

In his "personal story" piece, O'Reilly interviewed Mary Ann Mendoza whose son was killed by an undocumented drunk driver who also has a criminal record - in other words, a perfect platform from which O'Reilly can push his propaganda. O'Reilly began by reporting the back story, including details of Raul Silva Corona's past criminal record which consisted of a 1994 charge of assaulting a police officer and "burglary in Colorado." He didn't appear for his arraignments and, when he was later caught by the border patrol, he was sent back to Colorado for (Bill shouted) "three years probation and they let him go, they didn't even deport him."

He introduced Mendoza who has written a letter to the President asking him "why illegal criminals are allowed to stay in our country and kill our citizens." She claimed that she has done research on Obama's "agenda" which is to "raise the limit" on the number of crimes that "illegals can commit before they are deported." (Sounds like her research has taken her to some xenophobic sites because there is no such "agenda.") O'Reilly summed up her statement: "You say the President is soft on deporting illegal alien criminals." She said "absolutely." O'Reilly agreed with her that "there is no way that Raul Corona should have been in this country."

In describing her son, a policeman, she noted that he "fought to get people like this off the streets to keep our community safe." She wants Obama to acknowledge that "our children are being killed by illegal criminals who are allowed to stay in this country." O'Reilly claimed that "this wasn't a low level guy, this was a guy who assaulted a Colorado police officer." He said that he agreed with Ms. Mendoza 100% and that he was "glad" she "did what she did."

He then went into agitprop mode. He preached that Obama wouldn't respond because "there is no answer, the federal government is derelict" in "all of these things." He claimed that "as soon as an illegal alien commits a crime, no matter what the crime is, on the next plane unless it's a felony and you try them and put them in prison. We don't give them probation and let them walk out the door. That's insane." He mentioned his fight with Rivera that "got all over the place because I said once a criminalact is committed by an illegal alien there are no second chances...you don't give them bail and that's exactly what happened and that's what killed your son."

In claiming that the Obama administration is derelict in deporting criminals, O'Reilly is lying. According to ICE's numbers for 2013, "59 percent of all ICE removals, a total of 216,810, had been previously convicted of a crime." The NY Times reported, in April, that "a program of cooperation between federal immigration authorities and state and local police departments has been effective at focusing deportations on immigrants with a criminal record, according to a report published Tuesday by the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization here." It also notes that "at least 75 percent of immigrants deported by the Obama administration in the last five years through the program, known as Secure Communities, had been convicted of crimes."

Never mind the "no-spin zone." Try fact free zone! But then if it's "cheap political points" that you're after, it's all good...

BTW, as a blast from the past, I've included Bill's infamous conversation with Geraldo. I must admit - O'Reilly has mellowed.

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Hal, maybe you should learn to READ what is written instead of reading what Bill O’Reilly said.

Here’s what proves O’Reilly was lying (and it WAS in the post): According to ICE’s numbers for 2013, “59 percent of all ICE removals, a total of 216,810, had been previously convicted of a crime.” The NY Times reported, in April, that “a program of cooperation between federal immigration authorities and state and local police departments has been effective at focusing deportations on immigrants with a criminal record, according to a report published Tuesday by the Migration Policy Institute, a nonpartisan research organization here.” It also notes that “at least 75 percent of immigrants deported by the Obama administration in the last five years through the program, known as Secure Communities, had been convicted of crimes.”

Now, go back to your FoxNation cesspool where your type of brain-dead opinions are not only welcomed but encouraged.

“Nothing” you said proved O’Reilly wrong! you stated “what he said”—.Sgt.Andrew Tahmooressi was arrested going into Mexico.How hypocritical-“one American” arrested as opposed to thousands of Mexicans coming into the United States.